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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/29488827">The Tree That Caged The Blossom</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaDeeDa/pseuds/LaDeeDa'>LaDeeDa</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Tree That Caged The Blossom [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Original Work</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Accidental Kissing, Accidental Relationship, And then first LESBIAN kiss, Arranged Marriage, BAMF guard turns soft, Bad Flirting, Caretaking, Except Riella is no lady, F/F, First Kiss, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Forbidden Love, Happy Ending, Kissing, Lady and her guard, Marriage Proposal, Minor Violence, Oblivious Prisoner, Overprotective guard, Prisoner and her guard, Protectiveness, Romantic Fluff, Secret Crush, Sickfic, So maybe more, Sweet and soppy, Useless Lesbians, prisoner</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-02-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-03-20</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-15 23:54:04</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>6</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>11,812</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/29488827</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/LaDeeDa/pseuds/LaDeeDa</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Riella was under no illusion as to why Lord Montalli had propositioned her father for her hand. But he had offered so much gold for it that she couldn’t tell her father to do anything other than agree. Once the deal is sealed, she is whisked away immediately by the minor lord, her now betrothed, to be kept under lock and key… and guard. </p><p>Asta is a mercenary hired on to take the day shift at Riella’s door. She is an excellent swordswoman, but has no time for arse-kissing or fluffery.</p><p>What begins as a rough-edged relationship between guard and prisoner quickly blooms into something more despite the wooden door between them. Unfortunately for Riella, the attraction she develops towards her hard-faced guard will far outstrip her feelings for her lord.</p><p>Beta-read by THE MAGNIFICIENT Rebelrsr &lt;3</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>The Tree That Caged The Blossom [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2228286</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>18</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>23</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. Chapter 1</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Riella was under no illusion as to why Lord Montalli had propositioned her father for her hand. He had been fluttering about the city all week, somehow placing himself in her path multiple times a day.  She did not consider herself stunningly beautiful; she wished she had caught the minor lord’s attention with her intelligence, but apparently her face and lithe frame appealed to him. It was certainly flattering, and she did not dislike the compliments he bestowed upon her. At the very least he was relatively upfront as to his desire for her, even if it was only skin-deep. But that was the entirety of their rapport - every fleeting conversation was a sprinkling of adulation until she found a courteous means to excuse herself.</p><p>When he had offered her father enough gold to keep his business afloat for at least two decades, a slightly bitter taste had tickled her tongue. The lord was not open to a deliberation period either, he demanded an answer that day, that hour. Her father, who had always raised her without discrimination, consulted her thoroughly before accepting anyway. They discussed the offer while the minor lord hovered in the cobbled street outside. Regardless of how Riella felt towards the lord, she could not allow her father to refuse such a large sum of money. He was wealthy in the relative terms of their city, but he spent a large portion of his profits from his floristry business on the community. This was one of her greatest sources of pride in her family name.</p><p>The gold was paid upfront (Riella was adamant of this) and her sisters counted the coins carefully as she packed a small satchel with her most important things to leave immediately. Lord Montalli was determined to rush every aspect of their engagement, apparently. Maybe that was for the better. She could not dwell on just how much her life was about to change. The people she would not see daily, the places she would miss, the comfort of floral scents that had filled her life up to this moment. She hoped Lord Montalli kept arrangements in his manor.</p><p>She lifted her hand hesitantly to wave goodbye to her family before she climbed into the lord’s carriage waiting outside her father’s florist shop. Her father’s eyes held more tears than anyone else’s. Lord Montalli had graciously allowed her to enter first, and so followed behind and took the seat opposite her. The carriage driver shut the door behind them and signalled the horses to begin their journey.</p><p>Lord Montalli brushed a thin-fingered hand through his dark hair with an awkward smile. Riella smiled back gently, ready to build a positive bond and partnership with the man who was to become her husband.</p><p>“You will reside in the keep of Lord Redfallow from this day forth to ensure your purity and protection,” he said directly. It felt like an order.</p><p>Shock would be a criminal understatement. Riella forced herself to glance out of the small carriage window at passing buildings as she tentatively confirmed, “In Ravenskeep, my lord?”</p><p>“Yes, you will be… guarded there.”</p><p>A small part of Riella wondered if he had been tempted to say the word ‘imprisoned’ but had changed his mind at the last moment. She could not fathom why she had only hours ago become engaged to one lord and was now to be housed by another. Lord Redfallow was incredibly rich. He had many men at his disposal and more acres of land than her father’s home had bricks. Lord Montalli was a minor lord in comparison, but their territories brushed against each other. Lord Montalli’s land encompassed the city that Riella called home.</p><p>“This may be a strange new concept to you, my dear. But those of us with noble blood can be rather territorial; I am doing this to keep you safe until we are wed.”</p><p>“I understand, my lord.”</p><p>Riella did not understand. Lord Montalli did not have the wealth nor the land to warrant such concern, as far as she was aware. But her father was well-respected within the small region that the minor lord ruled over. He offered jobs, mentoring and counsel to many in both the city and the countryside. His philanthropic work was well-known despite the anonymity he always attempted to shroud himself in. It was possible this was Lord Montalli’s attempt to keep her out of view until the wedding in order to keep from upsetting anyone within his own territory. If her father retracted his blessing, she wondered how many of the men in the city would stand with him. Who would fight for her good, albeit non-titled, name?</p><p>“We are travelling there directly, no halts or pauses along the way so do not ask for scenic stops.” </p><p>Riella nodded obediently. </p><p>Lord Montalli continued without acknowledging her agreement. “Lord Redfallow will provide for you while you reside in his keep and I will visit when my schedule permits.”</p><p>“Yes, my lord.”</p><p>The remainder of their journey passed in almost complete silence. Riella’s inner voice did not take the hint, reeling through all of the possibilities of what she could expect of life in Ravenskeep. She was no lady and she did not know how to behave among nobles. Her mother had taught her basic etiquette but she doubted it would be enough. If she offended Lord Redfallow, would he be reporting to Lord Montalli? She wondered how badly she would need to displease the lord of the keep before she was turned out, possible a single woman once again.</p><p>Their arrival was announced by the shout of a hoarse-voiced man. Riella perked up in her seat at the sound. She leant forward to peer inquisitively out of the carriage window at her temporary home. Lord Montalli observed her with an amused twinkle in his eyes, as though she were a small animal behaving sweetly.</p><p>Ravenskeep lacked colour. Every brick was grey, every cobblestone was grey, and even the guard uniforms were grey. Once they had both stepped out of the carriage and down to the ground outside the main gates, Lord Montalli took off with confident strides. Riella tottered along behind him, attempting to draw as little attention to herself as possible. They approached the largest of buildings within the keep walls and she all but attached herself to his cloak. It worked for the most part, very few scuttling servants or clusters of court counsellors showed any interest in the slim woman shadowing the minor lord. </p><p>After an almost disrespectfully short introduction with Lord Redfallow, lord and commander of Ravenskeep and her temporary host, Riella was accompanied by her betrothed to her personal quarters. It was a bedchamber with a small washroom leading out from the side and a single rectangular window that allowed a view of more grey stone. Riella was not ungrateful; she could be very comfortable here. She wondered how long the two lords had been sitting on this plan, though. Lord Redfallow had appeared rather uninterested in her when she had curtsied before him and then bowed her head when Lord Montalli had named her. Perhaps he was simply humouring Lord Montalli as a friend. She had been hoping for slightly more conversation with the man whose home she would be residing in, but if she tried to scrape together a positive note from the meeting she could say that she had not been given a chance to embarrass herself in front of him. She was not stood in the great hall long enough to show her lack of noble blood or high-class upbringing.</p><p>She set her small bag upon the bed and wished Lord Montalli a safe journey back to his own home before he left. He bumped a hurried kiss to her forehead before he swept out of the room, leaving her flushed and unsure of herself. Not only her first kiss from her betrothed, but her first kiss that had not been placed on her hand.</p><p>He had made no promises of when he would return for a visit, but she hoped it would be soon. This was not at all what she had expected betrothal to be like. It would be ungracious to complain, and she was very appreciative of the money her father had been given, the private quarters she had been allocated and the simple fact that Lord Montalli had not, thus yet, appeared to be aggressive or cruel. Riella needed to spend more time with him though, to learn his heart. Marriage may be a mild power play for him, but she had a secretly romantic heart. It was her private desire that they grow close, that love would bloom, and they would spend many happy years together.</p><p>And so began her stay at Ravenskeep: the home of a lord she had met once, miles from both her family and her betrothed. Alone and under strict guard.</p><p>Her days were broken up almost solely by meals and sweet treats brought to her by nervous serving girls. She attempted to make conversation with them, but as yet she could not get much more than base small talk from them before they would scurry away. </p><p>One of the guards assigned to the rotation of standing outside her door for half a day at a time gave her a small portion of his time occasionally. His conversational repertoire was rife with curse words, tawdry tales and rather rude opinions, but she appreciated the human interaction all the same. Even if she did occasionally close her door feeling slightly scandalised by his words. His name was Stefan Black, and she called him mister Stefan.</p><p>Mister Stefan also allowed her out to refill her drinks and book supply. This was, he stated multiple times very firmly, purely on the basis that if she was away for longer than it took him to shit, then she would be in a great deal of trouble. Riella did wonder why he did not make an effort to empty his bowels outside of his working hours, but she was so grateful for a small pocket of time to escape that she dared not question him.</p><p>After what she had counted to be just over a fortnight at Ravenskeep, her lord had yet to visit her. With a determination not to slip into a lonely depression, she kept up her routine. Books from the library, sweet treats from the servants, juices and herbal teas from the cellar or kitchens. </p><p>A slow morning of reading, stretching and balancing on her toes to peer out of her single window had left Riella craving a sweet drink. It seemed about the right time for Stefan to take his daily excursion to the barracks bathrooms, so she knocked a chipper tune onto the wooden door and opened it, stepping out into the hallway with her tin mug.</p><p>“Where do you think you’re going?” barked a gruff voice so loudly it had her toes off the floor as a jolt of surprise and fear ran through her.</p><p>Riella turned on one slender foot to face the person who had spoken. It was a woman in rough leather armour that clung to her hulking body as though it were wet cloth. The grey Ravenskeep guards’ chest piece lay atop, an obviously uncared for addition. This woman had a mercenary’s aura, a self-assured stance that radiated confidence and unspoken threat, paired with an expression of boredom that all mercenaries Riella had ever met shared. It seemed they were never content in any job they took, but they were content to take the gold. Her hair was cut haphazardly, dark blonde tufts laid back as though she had dragged her fingers through it once and it froze in place. One of her brows had been interrupted by two scars slicing through it a quarter-inch apart. </p><p>Mister Stefan was nowhere in sight. </p><p>Riella shook off her surprise at the sharp question and the new face as best she could.</p><p>“To get juice!” she answered cheerfully, smiling with all the warmth she felt radiating inside of her at the thought of more sweet juice.</p><p>“Get inside.”</p><p>“O-okay.” Riella obeyed, stepping back into the main room of her quarters. </p><p>The tall woman followed her in, her sharp frown held in place. “What the hell are you playing at?” she growled, her voice low and dark and almost threatening.“You do not leave these quarters without Lord Montalli.”</p><p>“I’m sorry…” Riella whispered with bewilderment. “I didn’t-” she spluttered, clutching her tin cup tighter to her chest nervously. “I wanted to get juice.”</p><p>“Juice?” The woman asked incredulously, her thick brows raising angrily.</p><p>“Mister Stefan showed me where to get orange juice in the cellar.”</p><p>“He what?” she snapped. “I suppose that’s why he got relocated then. You’d better not have left this room alone before, though.” She stared Riella down with hard eyes, her hulking form looming over Riella’s much smaller frame. “Because if you have, you will be punished.”</p><p>Riella was quick to admit to the truth. She saw no reason to pretend as though Mister Stefan had escorted her. “I have, I’m sorry.”</p><p>“Why are you telling me that? I just said you would be punished; is your head empty or something?”</p><p>“That would be a lie,” Riella mumbled. “I don’t tell lies. He didn’t accompany me, I went alone. It wasn’t his fault.”</p><p>“Well…” The woman’s mouth opened and closed a few times, her brow flickering between creases of frustration and confusion. “Just… Don’t do it again.” She huffed. “I see you outside this door without his lordship again and you’ll be in the shitter.”</p><p>“Yes, ma’am.”</p><p>“You need something, you knock, and you ask for it.” </p><p>Riella nodded.</p><p>The woman stared at her for an extra moment and strode back the way she had come; she took the door by the wood instead of the handle.</p><p>“M-ma’am?”</p><p>“What?”</p><p>“May I have some juice, please?”</p><p>“Do you need juice?”</p><p>“I would appreciate it greatly,” Riella said softly.</p><p>Another pause, another blend of irritation and bafflement crossing the woman’s rough features.</p><p>“Give me the cup.” She put her hand out. Riella tentatively relinquished the small cup into the woman’s calloused hand. “I’m not getting it myself; I’m not a fucking skivvy, but I’ll grab the next servant that comes by and send them to. Don’t expect it back quickly.”</p><p>Riella nodded gratefully. “Thank you, ma’am!” The bright smile she attempted to present wobbled with the remains of her surprise at having been accosted.</p><p>The woman left without another word, leaving Riella to stew in the tension left behind in her claustrophobic quarters.</p><p>She learned from one of the skittish servants that evening that her new guard’s name was Miss Asta.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. Chapter 2</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you so much Rebelrsr for beta-reading! &lt;3 You are the best and I appreciate all of your time so much!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Lord Montalli had visited twice. One visit was spent inside of her quarters, talking and drinking tea and eating sweet treats. It had felt nervously intimate to have him in her private space, sat in a chair mere feet from the bed she slept in every night. The other visit had involved a stroll of the small gardens kept on the west side of Ravenskeep; they were accompanied by an entourage of guards and servants. They spoke in small bursts in between viewing beautiful sculptures and carefully trimmed topiaries. She hoped either they would find some common ground soon or a silent affection would bloom between them. As yet, she only felt tremulous in his presence. He had good breeding that had lent him a handsome face with a prominent nose and high cheekbones. She hoped to grow an attraction to him beyond his looks, though. All of his topics of conversation revolved around her physical features, but she was not looking to be flattered; she was hoping for an intellectual connection.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The visits did not follow a pattern she had noticed thus far, but she had not seen him for a number of days when the commotion began.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Clattering and yells of surprise were muffled by her door, but they still roused her from her doze. She sat up in bed unsteadily, blankets slipping down to her lap. It was nearing midnight from what she could tell from the minimal light allowed into the room by her small window. The horrifying cry of a man that sounded like Mister Auguste (her guard for the night hours) snapped the sleepy haze from her body. The pain in his voice was startling and stomach-turning.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella’s bare feet were skittering across the cool stone floor before she remembered leaving the bed. With a skid she halted just before the door and leant her face close until her ear was almost touching the wood. Multiple male voices growled on the other side, yelling, threatening, calling for aid. Metal and wood clashed and clanged without rhythm. Riella’s heart was beating in her cheeks, fingertips and stomach. A chilled sweaty sensation rippled over her skin both inside and out of her nightdress. They were fighting, but she didn’t know who ‘they’ were. The only voice she recognised was Mister Auguste.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Suddenly she heard a woman’s voice grunting and shouting added to the concoction of noise, recognising it after a few moments as Miss Asta. She was not due for rotation for hours yet, the sun was not close to rising. Riella could no longer hear her night guard, Mister Auguste. She closed the last of the gap between her face and the door, crushing the delicate skin of her ear against it.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As the peal of metal bouncing off metal continued, Riella’s terror had her alternating between holding her breath to hear better and panting through the anxiety that was clutching her chest. She had never been in such a situation; she had never fought anyone or been attacked. But the cries of pain and fury outside gave her conscience a thumping. She could not hover on the other side of the door and do nothing. Miss Asta and Mister August could be injured or in mortal danger. She could not stand by and let them get hurt, there was always something that can be done.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella jerked back from the door and began searching the tiny room for anything of weight. All she had to her name since leaving her family home were a few items of clothing and jewellery, books, perfume, and a pocketful of coins. Ravenskeep had provided her with bedding, a tin cup, a two-coloured rug, and… Riella’s eyes fell on the broom propped up against the wall beside the door that led to her private washroom. She snatched it up and ran back to the door. Fear-induced hiccups wracked her breaths, but she had no time to pause and gather herself. She needed to be of some help, any help.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella took as deep of a breath as she could shudder into her chest and threw the door open, broom raised over her head, and screeched, “Leave Miss Asta alone!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A thick, tension-filled silence settled on the hallway before her. Piles of bodies littered the ground with two standing in the centre. Asta swiftly cut the throat of the last intruder with a shortsword and dropped the slight man’s body atop the others. He went down with barely a gargle and was dead before he hit the ground.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What in the gods’ names are you doing?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella lowered the broom slowly, her arms shaking,</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I… I heard scary noises, I thought they were hurting you.” She managed to garble out through her tears. They had burst forth into her eyes in the same moment she had burst into the corridor.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The hard-faced guard looked her up and down scathingly and raised her brows, crinkling the scars that ran through one.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And you intended to battle them with… that?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I don’t have anything else, ma’am,” she sobbed, the overwhelming panic catching up with her again now that the fight seemed over. She dropped the broom with a clunk and covered her face with her nightgown sleeves. Half to cover her mortification and the other half to shield her eyes from the blood-coated hallway.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta approached swiftly and grabbed at Riella’s legs, swooping her up against her chest and walking her back into her room, kicking the door shut behind them.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You’re okay, you just took a fright,” she murmured comfortingly against Riella’s hair.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella clutched Miss Asta’s loose shirt wretchedly and sniffed. It was strange to see Miss Asta in comfortable clothing rather than armour. She guarded Riella’s quarters during the day, so she must have come straight from her own sleeping quarters when the disruption began. In the half-sleeved shirt, Riella could see the tattoos that decorated Miss Asta’s bulging arms. They were mostly patterns with a few symbols dotted between them, all black ink.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When she set her upon the floor, Riella’s legs were trembling but the tears had stopped, and she had been reduced to sniffs and hiccups. Something about the shock of seeing Asta, and even more so in her bedclothes, then being held by her like a child in her arms, had apparently aided in knocking the hysteria out of Riella.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Go wash you face,” Asta ordered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella nodded solemnly, her bottom lip distended, and turned on the spot to leave.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta grabbed the back of her nightie with the reflexes of a viper.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What the?” The guard said aloud, crouching to examine the backs of her legs.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella stiffened. he did not know how many more scares she could take before she fainted. “What’s wrong?” she squeaked.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“It’s my fault, I got blood on you when I picked you up.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What?!” Riella darted to her floor length mirror in her washroom and peered over her shoulder at her backside; she had to lift her nightgown higher than she’d usually like to see it, but sure enough there were scarlet, dripping, handprints on the backs of her thighs, just beneath her buttocks.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A churning feeling pulled at her tummy, but she tied her nightdress up in a knot around her waist once she had checked that Asta was still in the main room and could not see her. With the bottom half of her body exposed she briskly washed the wet marks from her thighs. Her hands moved quickly because the water was cold, and the blood smell was tickling the part of her throat that made her retch. Once the back of her was clean and dry, she returned to the main room with her nightdress released to cover her fully. Miss Asta was standing in the centre, her posture strict.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“It’s a good thing you noticed, I can’t be getting anything on my nightie - I only have the one,” Riella said as lightly as she could manage. Her voice shook despite her best effort at composure.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You could send it to be washed,” Asta offered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I wouldn’t have anything to sleep in for the rest of the night.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You could sleep naked.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella’s hand jumped to her face. “Ladies don’t do that!” she whispered with a nervous giggle.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“If you pay them enough, they do,” said Asta with the slightest tweak of a grin. There was a reminiscent tint to her eyes.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella flushed, her entire body heating uncomfortably. “Oh, my goodness.” She could not meet Miss Asta’s eyes as she tentatively asked, “Is that what you spend your free time doing?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Miss Asta’s almost-smile dropped. “My free time is none of your business, little lady.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes, ma’am,” Riella mumbled, flustered by the sudden change of atmosphere. She could have sworn the temperature genuinely dropped a few degrees in the room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A hurried, messy, knock on the door behind Asta had her drawing her sword again. She threw the door open with her body in a defensive stance. Riella hovered behind her, her own body wracked with jitters.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I was sent to check on Lord Montalli’s bride.” A man’s voice announced. “There have been multiple groups of crazed men forcing their way into the keep.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta lowered her weapon but did not sheath it. “The group that came our way are all on the floor at your feet,” she said carefully. There was a tinge of threat behind her words. As though she were the warning the man that if he were lying, if he was secretly one of those crazed men himself, that he would meet the same fate as those in the corridor.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“None slipped away?” he asked.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Not that I saw. I also came to protect Lord Montalli’s betrothed - I am her day guard.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Understood. I see she is in capable hands, I will continue my scouting of the area.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Have fun,” Miss Asta grunted before shutting the door. The man’s footsteps on the stone floor could be heard through the door for a few seconds before they dissipated with distance.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella shifted her weight from foot to foot and wrung her hands. “What about the others? Where did Mister Auguste go? Will Lord Redfallow be in danger?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“He has his own guards. My job is to guard you, so we will not worry about anyone else.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I don’t think I can keep from worrying,” Riella admitted.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta shrugged. “Well, I am locking us in here either way.” As she said it, she was already pulling a key from one of her pockets and shoving it into the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Okay, ma’am.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Go. Wash up. Then you will go to bed and do your best to sleep.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella nodded obediently and returned to the washroom to give the rest of her body a rinse. The skin of her face prickled at the chilly water, but she felt bounds better once she was clean. Temptation won and she took a quick glance in the mirror before she left the washroom. Her reflection’s eyes were puffy from tears, and her cheeks and nose were dusted with a light pink blush. Sleep would soothe her body, if she could get some.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella slipped back into the room, past Asta and to her bed. She slipped under the blankets and pulled them up to her chin. The room was as dark as it had been when Riella first awoke. Miss Asta had not lit a candle or lamp. She wondered if that was for the benefit of her rest, as Miss Asta had taken up a sentry position sat on the floor with her back against the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Miss Asta,” she whispered. “What will happen if more of those men come?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I will kill them, little lady,” Asta answered lazily. She was wiping blood from her sword as she spoke. Moonlight glinted off her weapon and her hawk-like eyes.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella buried her face into the pillows beneath her and squeezed her eyes shut. Sleep did not come easily to her.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0003"><h2>3. Chapter 3</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you Rebelrsr for beta-reading! x</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The men that Asta had cut down had not been there to hurt Lord Montalli’s betrothed. Asta had already assumed this, but it was confirmed in the Ravenskeep guards debriefing the day after the attack. The infiltration had been part of an attempt on a council member’s life, apparently a personal grudge rather than anything that could entangle Lord Redfallow or any of his family in an assassination plot. A few Ravenskeep guards had been killed, including Riella’s night guard. All of the intruders were dead.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As she had advised the young lady that night, it was not her concern. She had been roped in to protect some minor lord’s pet and that was all she was interested in doing. It was a shame that good men had died, but it was not as though the keep was overrun. They really should have been better prepared to fight at a moment’s notice. She supposed that was why Lord Redfallow was paying her so handsomely for this pathetic post; she was never slow to draw.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A new night guard was assigned to Riella’s door. A temporary guard had been sent to watch over her while Asta rested for the day, having spent the night sat on the cold stone, awaiting the sounds of oncoming attack. Once the temporary guard had been arranged, Asta excused herself from the rest of the guards meeting. She was not a sworn Ravenskeep guard, nothing else that was discussed would have any relevance to her or the contract she was serving for Lord Redfallow.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>On her walk back to the barracks to rest, her mind wandered back to the moment when the little lady’s door had burst open. Riella, all dainty limbs, unbroken skin, and soft waving hair, coming to her rescue was both laughable and… endearing. The urge to pull the timid little woman into her arms had completely overwhelmed her. She was surprised she had found the willpower to keep from devouring her, bruising her carnation-pink lips and leaving her trembling for an entirely different reason. She cleared her throat to force her mind elsewhere, away from such completely inappropriate thoughts. The young lady belonged to Lord Montalli; she was not to be touched by others. Asta had already crossed the line when she held her after the fight, but that was truly for Riella’s benefit. At least, that would be the defense she would use if the young woman were to repeat the happenings of the previous night to anyone. Riella was far too honest for her own safety.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Time apart would help. She would spend the next day and night resting and once she returned the following morning to take up her post, such feelings would not be plaguing her. She would not imagine Riella’s delicate little body curled into hers. She would not lie in bed and fantasise about all the ways she could make such an innocent young woman blush.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta reached her private sleeping quarters and changed into fresh bedclothes. She did her best to block the sunlight streaming in through her window, gave up, and climbed under her blankets. After a few seconds of almost-silence, sleep was already tugging at her without mercy. She succumbed, although this meant she quickly lost control of the path her thoughts fled down. A doe-eyed woman, shivering in her nightdress, skipped through her mind as she drifted off.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A day and a night had passed when Asta resumed her post. She advanced towards the newly appointed night guard with a straight back and her usual disinterested expression. It was the best way to keep men from interacting with her any more than was necessary. He glanced up as she approached and pushed himself off from the wall he had been leaning against.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Enjoy,” the night guard huffed. “She’s been coughing and hacking all night, driving me utterly mad…”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta hummed with mild concern and sent him on his way to rest in the barracks.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>All was silent for the first fifteen or so minutes of her watch, then a quiet cough floated through the air, and another, and then a much harsher hack of a cough that sounded too hard to have come out of such a small woman.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta knocked neatly on the door and entered without waiting for a call of permission from Riella.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>In the far corner of the bed she was huddled, blankets up to her ears and hair strewn over her sticky and sweaty face. Her cheeks and forehead were a rosy pink, contrasting shockingly with the violet semi-circles painted beneath her eyes. Her eyes could barely hold themselves half-open, the lids fluttering with obvious exhaustion.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta didn’t bother to ask her what was wrong. It was written on the young woman’s skin in sweat and eye-bags. Instead she leant over her, extending her hand and pressing it to her forehead as softly as she could manage. She was practically volcanic. At the feel of her cool hand, Riella’s brows pulled together and a soft whine escaped her lips, not that she seemed to truly notice Asta’s presence. She was far too drowsy.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta stayed far beyond an appropriate amount of time, stroking Riella’s face tenderly and murmuring soothing words. Or at least repeating expressions she had heard more soft-hearted women speak to the sick and wounded before. Polite talk, sweet nothings and honeyed words were not any of Asta’s methods of communication. She did not approve of excessive flattery or verbal trickery. This little lady needed comfort, though. There was a sense of a debt being owed at the back of Asta’s mind, too, as she remembered Riella’s intention to risk her life to fight for her… with a broom. Asta smiled to herself reflexively at the memory but managed to keep from chuckling. For one so small she held a fair amount of bravery, or perhaps simply foolish selflessness.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The servant girls delivered breakfast foods and then returned a few times with drinks, but Riella did not rise to so much as sniff the offerings. Asta was unsure of how aware the young woman even was of the comings and goings. Lifting the young woman’s body as gently as she was capable, she carefully tipped mouthfuls of water past Riella’s lips. At the very least, she needed to get water in her. It did not perk the little lady up as Asta had been hoping. After having managed to dribble a small cup’s worth of water into her, Asta allowed her to slump back to the bed. Even her drooping eyelids shone with sweat as she fought the fever that held her so tightly in its grasp.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta knew she needed to return to her post before someone of higher status than the servants noticed she was skulking about the young lady’s private quarters. Her place was on the other side of the door. Being fully aware of this fact did not ease her concern at leaving Riella to fight her sickness alone. With another stroke of her hand against the silk-thin skin of Riella’s burning forehead, Asta peeled herself from her bedside and took her position in the corridor outside.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Just past midday, the young lady’s owner flounced into the hallway that led to Riella’s quarters. He was flanked by two guards of his own household. They appeared as bored as Asta usually felt standing at Riella’s door for half a day at a time. Asta watched the lord approach but gave no greeting or expression as he did so. She had never used charm or socialisation to make connections in her line of work; although, she knew many did, she let her swordsmanship and physique speak for her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I trust my beloved hasn’t been causing you too much trouble?” Lord Montalli asked as he drew up in front of her. His face held a slightly teasing smile that Asta did not return.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“She has a fever, my lord,” she answered quietly. “She’s barely moved all day.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Ah, thank you for the forewarning, I think I’ll postpone my visit until the sickness has left her.” He turned to leave.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You do not wish to check on her first?” The words slipped from Asta’s mouth before she could consider them.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The lord’s expression soured. “You are here to guard my future wife, not advise me on how to spend time with her.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Of course, sir.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Apology accepted,” he said dismissively. Asta held her tongue from correcting him, from giving him a verbal lashing and making it quite clear that the only person she apologises to is her mother. He continued, unaware of the fury brewing inside of her. “I can’t be catching some festering flu from her; I have duties to attend to.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Of course, sir,” she said tightly.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>With dawdling guards in tow, he left quicker than he had arrived. Asta sighed quietly to herself as she watched him leave. It was an awful shame for such a sweet young woman to be wasted on such a bone-headed man.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>With the knowledge that Lord Montalli would not be making another appearance to check in for some time, Asta took the opportunity to slip back inside the room and plant herself at Riella’s side for the rest of the day.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0004"><h2>4. Chapter 4</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you so much Rebelrsr! &lt;3 The most awesome beta in the world even when sick!</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>The fever left Riella in waves, dredging her consciousness back to the surface more and more with every few hours that passed. The sweaty cocoon that had entrapped her slowly unfurling to deposit her back into reality. She was still unwell when she opened her eyes successfully for the first time in two days and two nights. Her muscles ached, her throat was raw, and her head was pulsing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>In her dozing state she had been visited by strange dreams. Dreams of her family, of her friends from the city, of Asta. The Asta of her dreams was gentle. She stroked her face and murmured kind words to her. There was little similarity in the temperament of the Asta of her dreams and the stern personality of the real Asta who stood steadfast outside her door. But Riella had enjoyed the fantasy all the same, not that she would ever admit this aloud. The soft touch of a hard person felt special, like a wolf nuzzling you in the style of a dog. Or perhaps Asta could be more appropriately compared to a lion with her blonde cropped hair. Riella wondered how it would feel to run her fingers through it.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The doctor that visited her once she had awoken fully advised the sickness had most likely been brought on as an after-effect of her hysteria when she witnessed the fighting and death in the hallway  outside of her room. The death of Mister Auguste had wracked her with immense guilt, in particular.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella did not disagree with that diagnosis but wondered how much impact her lack of fresh air and sunlight was having on her health in general. Her previously sun-kissed skin had been leeched of colour and her body was far more fatigued these days. She had left the grey stone walls of Ravenskeep once since arriving, when Lord Montalli took her for a walk in the gardens. The thin crack that she regarded as a window only allowed a minute chunk of natural light to enter, although she did her best to sit in its path when she could. Otherwise, she relied heavily on candles to allow her to read small text or see the opposite end of the room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She raised her concerns with the doctor, who promised to take up the subject with Lord Montalli. She was then given a tonic and advised to take plenty of water and rest. The doctor gave her strict instructions not to exert herself and not to indulge in rich foods or partake in any alcoholic beverages. Riella nodded obediently and was left once again to sit alone in her quarters. She had never tried true drink before; her father was not the type to be found in taverns and that influence had rubbed off on Riella and her sisters. She also did not know how she could possibly exert herself in her cage-like quarters. The additional problem she faced was, although she felt drained from fighting the fever, she was not tired in the sleepy sense. She could not bear to lie about aimlessly any longer.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella scrubbed her face briskly, the cold water in her washroom was refreshing after stewing in her bed for days. She needed a full bath, though. She wrapped a blanket around her sweat-crusted body and pulled her tangled hair back, tying it at the nape of her neck with a silk tie. Appearing slightly better than she had a few minutes before, she knocked gently on her side of the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Miss Asta’s voice responded almost instantly. “Riella? Is that you knocking?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes,” Riella said as loudly as she could, her voice cracked from lack of use.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The handle turned and the door opened. Asta looked her up and down with concerned eyes and raised brows.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“How’re you feeling, little lady?” she asked, dropping her body to the side to lean into the room from the door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Better,” Riella whispered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m glad to hear it.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I need a bath, though, desperately,” said Riella with slight embarrassment. “Do you know if there will be any servants on their way soon?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“They came by fairly recently to refill your water jugs so I doubt they will be back until lunchtime.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh, okay.” Riella fiddled with the blanket awkwardly under Asta’s sharp gaze. She could not read the taller woman’s expression at all, not even a hint to what was going on behind her scarred face. “Co-could you ask them for me when they do come back?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I will ask them now.” Asta pushed off from the door frame. “Keep this door closed and don’t speak to anyone.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella stepped forward, startled, she had not intended to imply she wanted Asta running around on her behalf. She was not making demands, she would never. “Y-you don’t need to do that, I can wait.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“It’s fine,” Asta said with a ghost of small. “I’ll be back.” She stepped backwards into the hallways but kept her eyes on Riella’s face.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella followed instinctively, taking a single step out of her quarters. “Please don’t put yourself out on my account i-”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Miss Asta raised her hand suddenly and Riella flinched back with eyes pinched closed. The pad of a single finger pressed against her forehead. “I said it’s fine. Take yourself back to bed for now.” Riella opened her eyes and Asta pressed her back into the room with only her finger. Riella flushed but nodded obediently. Once she was far enough inside, Asta shut the door between them.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The servants were far more efficient than usual, rushing back and forth with buckets of near-boiling water as though they were being put through drills by an army general. Riella bumbled about her room, unsure of how to contribute or react. Asta stood at the door looking as intimidating as always.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The bath was magnificent. Nothing was any different within the tub to any previous bath that had been prepared for her, but her body had needed it so much more. Emerging from her washroom amidst billowing steam, dressed in a simple light dress and with hair tightly braided, had her feeling completely revitalised in comparison to how she had awoken. While she had marinated in the hot water peppered with oils and petals, her bedding had been stripped and swapped for fresh sheets, blankets and pillows. Her small window was open, and the room only faintly smelled of sickness still.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A short knock on the door warned her of Miss Asta’s entrance only a few seconds before she was in the room.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I thought you would appreciate a forewarning that your lord will be making an appearance tomorrow morning,” she announced.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella said, “Oh?” Her cheeks warming at the thought that her betrothed would be visiting out of concern for her health.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“The good doctor recommended more fresh air so he will be taking you for a stroll of the gardens.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh, how wonderful!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You miss the outdoors?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Greatly.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta rocked forward on her heels to murmur into Riella’s ear, “Perhaps I will sneak you out with me at some point in the future, then.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella felt her blush burning her cheeks and the tips of her ears as she floundered for a response. Asta stepped back with a restrained smile and left swiftly. Riella hovered near the door for a few moments afterwards, catching her breath.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The next morning she was washed, dressed and had her hair styled by the time the sky was faintly turning back to blue after the sunrise. And then she waited. And waited. And when it was approaching midday, her betrothed finally arrived.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>He had a tall and blank-faced man either side of him, but they did not acknowledge her. Lord Montalli took her hand and kissed the back lightly. Riella breathed a greeting with her head tilted down and allowed him to sweep her out of the room by her elbow. She could feel Miss Asta’s eyes locked onto her back as they left the corridor.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>In the gardens they walked leisurely, taking in the colours, the crisp scents, and the sensation of each other’s fingers interlocking and curling into one another. When they reached a decorative hedge maze with only two layers, they separated from the guards escorting them. The two men took sentry positions at the entrance and Riella followed a step behind Lord Montalli and he navigated the tall hedges and finely trimmed topiaries. In the centre there sat a pair of stone benches and a collection of rose bushes, overflowing with stunning blooms. The romanticism was not lost on Riella; she appreciated the gesture immensely. Her sisters always bemoaned men and their inability to be passionate or thoughtful, but it seemed she had found one of the few who could appreciate beauty and intimacy. Perhaps the floral odours and magnificent architecture of the gardens were clouding her head…</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The pair dropped onto one of the stone benches together, only just enough space for them to perch side by side. Riella breathed deeply, enjoying the cool air immensely. She felt like a caged bird that could finally spread its wings, all creaks and cracks and twinges. But pleased for the stretch all the same.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Lord Montalli’s hand rested in her lap. The weight barely rumpled her skirts, but it pressed heavily on her nerves. She could feel something approaching, something she had not experienced before but somehow could sense its arrival. He turned his head, bringing it close to hers. His nose brushed her cheek as he aligned their faces. Riella held her breath involuntarily. His lips met hers and they were warm. She held still, afraid to move or breathe and inadvertently ruin the moment. Her mind seemed to simultaneously focus on everything around them at once, the rose bushes, the high hedges, the clear air brushing over her skin, the cold stone of the bench beneath them pressing into her backside.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>After a few silent moments, he pulled back and smiled serenely down at her. She smiled back, her face burning, before dropping her eyes to where his hand remained in her lap.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>They strolled a while longer through the grounds and then took tea in a secluded courtyard on the route back to her quarters. Riella desperately did not wish to return but did not complain. She was not a child and would not act like one, especially not in front of her future husband.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta had not budged an inch when they returned. There was a glint in her eyes that had Riella wondering if she knew exactly what had transpired in the hedge maze, but it was not possible. Her father had told her often that she could be read easier than a road sign. Was the kiss lingering on her skin for all to see?</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Lord Montalli brushed his hand across her cheek gently as they said their goodbyes and she returned to her cage on her own two feet. Inside her heart there was a far smaller version of Riella who was kicking and screaming and needing to be dragged. When the door clunked shut behind her a hollow pain burrowed deep into her chest. She struggled to breath for a moment but fought the tears away. She did not want Asta to hear her being quite so pathetic. It was a room. A comfortable room. One she would eventually leave.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>As the sun was setting, filling the small room with a golden glow, an abrupt knock drew Riella’s attention from her book to see Asta welcoming herself into her quarters.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Your night guard is indisposed, so I will be staying until they send a replacement,” she said casually.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella perked up from her seat on her rug. “Oh, thank you.” She pulled herself up and dropped her book to her bed covers. “That’s very generous of you to give even more of your time.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“It’s no bother to me, little lady.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I hope you are not too bored, Miss Asta,” Riella said, perhaps more coyly than she had intended to sound. She wished she had more opportunities to spend time with her handsome guard, for boredom relief only, of course.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Given that I am only contracted for the daylight hours, I will be taking the opportunity to begin drinking while I wait for whichever idiot they send down here,” Asta responded with a barely hidden smile. Her eyes flashed with what might be taken for mischief in a less stern woman.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Drinking?” Riella whispered, almost excitedly and partly with nerves. She approached the doorway where Asta stood, leaning her weight onto one side in a stance that jutted out her hip and took a few inches off her staggeringly tall frame.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Have no fear, young damsel.” Asta chuckled quietly, Riella could only assume at her own innocence. Her throat warmed at how inexperienced she must seem to this hardened guard. “I never allow myself to get drunk. But a splash of wine here and there can liven a dull evening.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“W-would you like to sit down while you do? You’re welcome to my table and chair.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Despite pressing the door shut behind her, Asta countered, “If there’s only one chair, where will you sit?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“On my bed? Or perhaps the floor, I like to sit on the rug when I read. It’s far more comfortable than it looks. Please don’t feel obliged to keep me company, though. I wouldn’t want to ruin your… wine.” Riella could not tell if she was rambling, the words simply would not stop.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta twisted her head back and forth, cracking her neck. Her face was pulled up by a curious grin that was utterly unlike the firm-faced woman. “Why don’t we share the rug?” she said slowly.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Okay,” Riella said breathlessly, and lead the way back to the small multicoloured rug that sat at the foot of her bed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She dropped as gracefully as she could to her knees, allowed her skirts to puff around her legs. Asta took a seat beside her, spreading her long legs out ahead of her and leaning back against the bed frame. She unhooked a soft flask-like item from her belt and pulled a cork from the top before taking a slow swig. The smell of wine tickled Riella’s nose but she said nothing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta offered the wineskin, holding it over Riella’s lap carefully. Riella glanced at it, then up to Asta’s face.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“The doctor ordered me not to take any alcohol after my sickness,” she whispered. It was the first statement that popped into her mind.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Are you a regular drinker?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“No, I have never had anything.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Then I would not think one sip would do you too much harm. I promise it is better than the juices you love so much.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella managed to flush even further but she held a trembling hand out for the wine skin. Asta uncorked it again and passed it over, an expectant twinkle in her eyes. Riella took the tiniest of mouthfuls, barely enough to cover her tongue, and winced as the sharp taste filled her mouth and nose. Maybe Asta had only ever experienced juice that had been left too long in its barrel if she thought this was better than the sweet drinks in the cellar. Even after she had swallowed, the after-taste clung to her mouth and throat. It tickled her breath whenever she sucked in. She looked to Asta in bewilderment and the older woman burst into wild cackles.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Riella, you look utterly horrified,” she said through her bouts of laughter.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“That was awful!” Riella gasped out. “Why would you choose to drink that?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You are a grown woman with the drinking tastes of a child.” Asta teased gently. She corked the wine and put it aside, smiling to herself.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella laughed, too, then.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The warmth that hummed along the skin of her arms, chest and face could have been the single sip of wine she had endured. But Riella felt the culprit was far more likely to be the one who gave her the wine skin. Her tall and sturdy body sitting so close to Riella’s own. The kind of body that had you feeling overpowered before it had even touched you. The kind you secretly wished to be overpowered by.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Miss Asta glanced at her, raising her twice-scarred eyebrow in a silent question. Riella swallowed.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Their mouths fell together easily, the way a wave crashes onto the shore. Thoughtless and unconstrained. Soft but searching. Firm fingers dragged up the back of Riella’s neck and burrowed into her hair, gripping her tightly. Riella whimpered and let her own tinier hands curl into the collar of Asta’s undershirt. Asta growled approvingly into her mouth and it sent shivers down to Riella’s toes. She inched forward on her knees until she was climbing into Asta’s lap, their lips never disconnecting. One of the hands in her hair dropped to her waist and yanked her in even closer; Riella stumbled forward, falling chest to chest with the woman devouring her mouth. Luckily, Asta could hold both their weight and push her tongue against Riella’s simultaneously.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>It was unclear how much time had swept by them when they heard the echo of stomping steps approaching the hallway, but Asta straightened instantly. Riella scrabbled from her lap and both women drew themselves up quickly into awkward standing positions. With a breathless glance between them, Asta slipped back outside in time to greet the temporary night guard.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella took the wine skin from the floor and placed it carefully on her table to return it the next morning, when she hoped she would feel less ashamed of what she had done.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0005"><h2>5. Chapter 5</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I know I always say this but Rebelrsr is the best! Thank you for being the best beta in the whole wide world! &lt;3</p></blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Now Asta truly knew she had gone too far.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Harbouring inappropriate feelings towards Lord Montalli’s betrothed was already dangerous; kissing her could have Asta’s head taken clean off if she caught Lord Redfallow on a bad day. And she had not only kissed her. She had pulled her in, grappling at her dainty frame and collecting fistfuls of her dress as an animalistic desperation overtook her. For a few minutes, she had utterly lost her senses.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When she had returned the next morning to collect her wineskin, Riella had regressed to her skittish, deer-like state. They did not discuss the kiss. It was a few days before the tension had eased enough for small talk once again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Despite her common sense and the impending doom looming over her shoulder, Asta found herself knocking on the wooden door at least once a day. Sometimes she could think of a reason why she needed to enter. More often than not, she had nothing.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>But when Riella would answer with a sweet and tentative, “yes?” she would slip inside without hesitation. They would talk for an hour or so, usually until they heard the approach of a servant or guard outside. Then Asta would wish her a good rest of her day and return to her post.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Worryingly, it had become the highlight of Asta’s days. Riella’s secretly talkative nature had bewitched her, filled with sweet sayings and adorable anecdotes. The lips her words fell from had Asta just as hypnotised. She wanted to bite them. She wanted to feel Riella cry out into her mouth and shiver in her embrace.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta shook her head and rubbed her fingertips through her shortly sheared hair. She was sinking deeper into a pit that she should never have even approached.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The precious lord had not returned for another visit and it had been weeks since his and Riella’s stroll through the grounds on doctor’s orders. Apparently, Lord Jon Montalli had better prospects for his time than spending it with his future wife. Riella had no such opportunities. She was trapped in a room that would drive any animal mad.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>The least Asta could do for the woman, as a fellow human being, would be to provide her with company and a few excursions into the gardens for fresh air. Riella’s thrilled reaction to the suggestion had hit Asta like a bolt to the chest.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>They had been questioned once thus far, a bold guard asking after their permissions. Asta had been quick to concoct an answer: that the gracious lord had requested she take his betrothed out for air and light after her sickness since he had not been able to do so of late. The lie had had Riella trembling for an hour afterwards.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“As far as you are concerned, you are a hostage in these walks,” Asta advised her once they were hidden amongst the tall hedges that surrounded the white stone fountain. It was one of Riella’s favourite areas amongst the rolling lawns and long flowerbeds. Asta had noticed she liked the secluded corners, topiaries and trellises that blocked them from view of prying eyes. “That is what you will say if you are questioned about my lie, so relax yourself.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“That is a double lie!” Riella gasped.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Well, if both of us lie then who will they believe? Either way both lies keep you out of trouble.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And what about you?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I have never had trouble finding work, especially guarding important women. The husbands like the thought of a lady guard. I doubt my next charge will be as beautiful as you, though.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella’s entire body broke out in a dark blush. Asta revelled in its bright pigment; it was highly addictive. She found herself spouting honeyed words more and more often simply to see it. A troubling transformation was taking place and she found herself morphing more and more into a soppy fool. The worst part was that she could not bring herself to be irritated by it, she had simply accepted her new existence as a love-struck buffoon.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>~</p>
<p> </p>
<p>On a wander amongst the rose trellises, Asta lost her senses once again.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>A thorny vine had snagged Riella’s hair in passing, halting her with a yelp. Asta turned quickly, her hand tapping the hilt of her sword reflexively. Ready to protect her charge at a moment’s notice. A step behind her, Riella was stuck to the trellis beside her. The young woman’s doe-like eyes were raised to peer at the entangled section of hair, but she did not lift her hands to free herself. Her eyes met Asta’s, and a giggle burst from her. Her smile was wide, and her eyes crinkled as she laughed at herself. Asta joined her, laughing quietly as she approached, and began to carefully separate hair from nature. Riella held still as a stone but Asta could feel her breath on her throat, tickling her skin as she worked on the untwining of lady and bush.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Once the vine was released, she tucked it back into the trellis and pushed her other hand through Riella’s lochs, grazing her fingertips over the smaller girl’s forehead and then scalp. Riella shivered at the light touch and her lashes bounced a little in surprise before they locked eyes. Asta stooped forward. Their lips were drawn together like magnets, the closer they got, the harder it became to pull back. Until eventually they snapped together as the clasp of a coin purse would.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Somehow Asta felt out of breath before a few seconds had even passed. As though Riella were dragging the air from her lungs through the kiss. The hand buried in Riella’s hair slid beneath her ear and tilted her heart-shaped face up, offering more of her mouth to Asta’s. Her eyes were closed but it only mattered what she could feel. The tremble of Riella’s tiny hands pressed into her leather chest piece. The hum of her soft moans in Asta’s mouth. The tender press of her tongue when she finally cracked her mouth open to allow Asta entrance.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Her hands found Riella’s waist, slamming them together and curling the pair of them further into the metal frame of the trellis. Her knuckles were pricked and poked by thorns but that was better than them digging into her beloved’s back or tearing her skirts.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta groaned in a combination of hunger for more and the slowly-building resignation to the fact that she had to let go at some point. She had to release this beautiful woman back to the world she lived in eventually. It was not a reality they could share.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>When she pulled back their noses remained touching, their eyes locked and their breath colliding in the tiny space between them.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I should not have done that,” Asta whispered.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella answered, “I hope that will not stop you from doing it again.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Bold. Incredibly bold for the timid Riella.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I hope <em>you</em> have the sense to tell me to stop, because I cannot find the strength to.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella dotted a chaste kiss to Asta’s cheek and spun away, striding away from the rose gardens and leaving the mercenary to play chase. Apparently, that was all the answer the young lady was willing to give. Asta did not need more, in fact she genuinely wished Riella would give her less, would allow her less freedom to act on her inappropriate whims. Without a refusal, Asta did not know how she could stop.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0006"><h2>6. Chapter 6</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Riella never told her to stop. Asta waited for the words but they never came. She attempted to coax the words from the young woman many times, but to no avail. And now she had fallen too deep.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>To say that Asta had formed an attachment was the greatest understatement she could think of. The bond she had developed to the young lady was bordering on painful in its sticky, clinging texture. She could not break free. Not that Riella ever gave her a reason to. Sweet, precious Riella. Any time their faces got within a few inches of each other, their lips would bridge the gap and their fingers would explore without hesitation.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She was a fool, drowning in love and not even attempting to save herself. Because until Riella said otherwise, she had nothing holding her back.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>And then the messenger arrived, almost bowling her over as his horse shot past to get into the inner section of the keep. She had been on her way to begin her shift with Riella, but this seemed important. Her gut urged her to follow and find out what news this panicked rider brought.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She slipped inside the keep and crept into the main hall where Lord Redfallow saw guests, nobles, townspeople… and messengers. She hid herself between two of Lord Redfallow’s guards as he received the message. Her eyeballs threatening to pop out of her face as she listened.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Once the messenger had bowed and retreated, she slipped back out of the main hall, stalked through the courtyard and somehow managed to keep from sprinting the last few metres to Riella’s door.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She shooed away the night guard and burst in without knocking.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I have some news I must share with you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Oh?” Riella answered sleepily. She was sat up in bed, cradling a book in her lap. Her face was adorably puffy, and her hair mussed. Asta resisted the urge to squeeze her cheeks.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Instead, she got right to the point. “Lord Montalli is dead,” she announced.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella said nothing, so Asta continued.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“He was taking an excursion to a neighbouring territory and was killed in an accident on the journey.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Accident?” Riella repeated in a murmur.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta knew exactly what the young lady was truly asking.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Lord Redfallow has been advised by a highly reputable source that they are certain there was no foul play.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella blinked a few times as she processed all the new information. “Oh, good. I mean, it’s not good. None of this is good, it’s terrible that this has happened to him. But I am glad he was not targeted or attacked deliberately. He didn’t deserve that.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“This was no plot,” Asta reassured her. “Simply bad luck for both him and his horse.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella whispered, “Poor Chestnut.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta felt awful for being tickled by the barely audible words. Only Riella had a big enough heart to find sympathy for the horse as well as the man. She fought a smile at the innocence embodied in front of her.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella began to ramble to herself as she pushed aside the book and climbed from her bed covers. “This does not feel… I cannot quite believe it… If this is your idea of a joke, I do not appreciate it at all.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I am sorry to say that this is not a hoax. The death was confirmed and subsequently investigated by Lord Cole, he holds territory that borders on Lord Montalli’s. It was Lord Cole who sent the messenger.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“No, I am sorry.” Riella ran her fingers through her hair distractedly and began to wander about the room without a clear route or reason. “I wasn’t accusing… I am-”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Shocked, little lady, I understand.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Yes,” Riella mumbled.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I can tell you I know Lord Cole to be an honest man from the small amount of time I spent with him on a contract a few years back. He will work with Lord Redfallow to do right by Lord Montalli.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella continued to pace about for a minute or so more as she processed Asta’s assurances.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>She stopped still in the middle of the room. “What happens now… with the engagement?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You will be taken before the court of Lord Redfallow for a hearing, and they will decide whether to grant you freedom or pass you on to some other minor lord,” Asta explained.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“And how do I convince them to let me leave?” Riella turned on her heel to face Asta properly. “There is no reason for me to marry a different lord, they have no need to curry favour in this area like Lord Montalli did. I don’t have noble blood.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta stepped closer, attempting to hide her sympathy so as not to be read as pitying the poor young woman and her limited options. Her options hadn’t been limited before she had met the Lord, but now his imprint was upon her. She was a bright, intelligent woman from a wealthy family, she could have chosen just about any path she wanted.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“They will need to curry favour if they are to be gifted his lands by Lord Redfallow. Lord Montalli had no kin left. It has not been decided how his assets will be split as of yet. But being his betrothed has elevated your status slightly, even if the blood does not run through you. They will be convinced there is something special about you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What do I do?” Riella murmured. Her round eyes were desperate and searching. Her hopeless expression was twisting Asta’s heart, wringing it out painfully.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Either you find yourself a new betrothed before your hearing, or you get yourself defiled by the stable boy,” she suggested.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella huffed indignantly. “Husbands don’t grow on trees; how am I to get engaged so fast?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“So you plan to be bent over a bale of hay instead?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“No, thank you.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta chuckled at her polite reply. Riella couldn’t help herself, she was sweet to a fault.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You say husbands don’t grow on trees,” she began slowly, building her bravery with each word. Despite considering herself the courageous type, Asta found herself twitching with nerves as she prepared to make her declaration. “But you’ve had a wife planted outside your door since mere days after you arrived.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“What do you mean?” Riella said softly. The hope in her voice heartened Asta, filling her with a bubbling, volatile almost-confidence.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Marry me.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Why would you do that for me?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“I’m not asking for you, I’m asking for me.” Asta corrected her. “I don’t expect you to love me back or even like me. I won’t ask you to reciprocate in any way if you never feel the same, but I would be honoured for the chance to try. I won’t force myself upon you, or put any pressure on-”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Asta!” Riella gasped as though she had just heard a curse word shouted near her. She snatched one of Asta’s hands and held it gently in both of her own. “I love you, too.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“You don’t need to say that; I’m all yours even just to stand at your sid-”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Again, Riella made that exasperated gasping sound. “Asta! Truly, genuinely, honestly, I love you!”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta huffed and rolled her eyes, although she was not irritated, only embarrassed. “I suppose I have no choice but to believe you, then.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella’s pleased grin dropped almost as quickly as it had appeared. “But what if Lord Redfallow disapproves? He controls the outer region, he-”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“He is no threat of mine, young lady.” Asta said carefully. “I do not often stoop to methods of blackmail to get my way, I like to think myself the upfront type, but I can promise you that he knows better than to test my nerve.” She would send him a letter once they had put a distance between them and the keep. She would explain her decision and advise the Lord against trying to fight her on it. She knew things even his wife did not. Where he stuck his cock had never been of interest to her but a lot had changed since she had met Riella. She was willing to do things she had never considered before for this woman. She would absolutely kill for her. She already had, technically.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Riella appeared to be considering Asta’s vague words and the new path opening up before them. With doe-like eyes darting about, she asked in an excited whisper, “Well, what name would I be taking?”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Asta kissed her before answering. A hungry and deep kiss that Riella reciprocated eagerly. She laid her hands over Riella’s nightdress and lifted her off the ground slightly in her quest to pull her closer. When they broke apart, she breathed into her betrothed’s ear, “Garrick.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Asta Garrick,” Riella whispered. “As much as I would love to spend the rest of the day in your arms, I think we may need to hurry if we do plan to leave.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>“Agreed.”</p>
<p> </p>
<p>While Riella dressed herself, Asta packed the few personal possessions in the room into the satchel Riella had arrived with. Watching Riella dart back and forth half-dressed had been a great challenge for Asta’s composure but she somehow managed to keep herself on task. There may have been a few pauses, and some mild drooling and ogling.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>Dressed and packed, they hurried to the door, both reaching for the handle at the same time. Their outstretched hands hovered in the air side by side for a moment, then Asta snatched Riella’s and squeezed. She used her free hand to pull the door open and they stepped through hand-in-hand.</p>
<p> </p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Notes for the Chapter:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
          <p>Thank you to Rebelrsr for being the amazing beta of this work &lt;3 I appreciate it so so so much! ;-;</p>
        </blockquote><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Thank you so much Rebelrsr for being the most amazing beta ;-; I appreciate your awesome advice and guidance so much!</p><p>There will be an explicit one shot coming soon :) I'll add it in a series ^^</p></blockquote></div></div>
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